Bent Knee

587 Washington St. Apt. 1, Boston, Massachusetts, USA

BandAlternativeRock

An immersive journey and an intimate conversation all at once, Boston's Bent Knee is perhaps the perfect soundtrack for those obsessed with the new and unusual. Boasting incredible musicianship and astonishing dynamic range, the art-rock ensemble's live show “sends expectations reeling” (Cover Me) and “lands us into what would go down in hipster heaven history of music transcendence" (Playback:stl). Their new album comes out this fall.

Biography

On Shiny Eyed Babies, the genre-defying Boston, MA art rock collective
known as Bent Knee push themselves far beyond the conventional definition of
“indie rock.” Drawing from an expansive sonic palette edged by the touchstones
of heavy psych, baroque pop, and avant-jazz, the ensemble craft compositions
where melodies swell and collapse, only to coalesce unexpectedly into anthemic
crescendo.

Fiercely innovative, Shiny Eyed Babies bridges the gap
between the experimental and the familiar, combining texture and style into
music that’s moving, addictive, and unapologetically original. Described as
“grand, serene, and progressive” (The Needle Drop), the sound is new and the
scope is vast; yet, infused with a thrilling immediacy, the music cuts straight
to the soul.

A musical family that works –
and works hard – at their art, Bent Knee came into being in 2009 at Boston,
MA’s Berklee College of Music. Brought together by a shared love of the epic
and grand, their individual stories fit together like the pieces of a shattered
key that, once assembled, opens the gates to a soaring sonic fortress full of
secrets waiting to be revealed.

The band - Courtney Swain
(vocals), Ben Levin (guitar), Chris Baum (violin), Jessica Kion (bass), Gavin
Wallace-Ailsworth (Drums), & Vince Welch (production and sound design) -
wrote the majority of Shiny Eyed Babies collectively,
hashing out songs in bedrooms and evolving material on the road. Songs would often start out as thematic, musical,
or lyrical ideas, which would then be molded and sculpted by the ensemble into
fully realized pieces of music.

This collaborative creative
process among such a wide range of backgrounds and influences is painstaking
work for a group where musical decisions require unanimity. Yet it’s those beautiful moments when everything
falls together, like magic, that reaffirm their dedication to this singular
vision.

Distilling the musical lives of
six virtuosic obsessives down into something bracingly new, Shiny Eyed Babies is both raw and
cerebral; innovation that remains within reach. The album can be enjoyed simply
floating on the surface, certainly, but those willing to plunge into its depths
will find revealed the hidden secrets that dwell beneath and touch the spark of
creativity. Combining both immense depth and musicality with enthralling melody
and grand arrangement, Shiny Eyed Babies
is high art for masses.